Choosing The Right Horse Racing Saddle – A Complete Guide
Just like in any other discipline, racehorses wear equipment that aids them in doing their duties well. The key for trainers is to keep such equipment as light as possible. According to expert opinion, the weight of the jockey, the type of horse racing saddles, and the equipment a horse carries play a significant role in winning the race. With that in mind, this blog entails a detailed guide about choosing the fitting saddles for your horse.
Racing With Horse Saddles: An Overview
Racing saddles are incredibly compact and light. They are used primarily by jockeys on thoroughbred horses who gallop and jump fences. The stirrups are extremely short, and there is just one girth strap on the saddles. Since the rider is meant to hover above the saddle while squatting in the stirrups rather than sit in it, the seat is flatter than those of other saddles. In contrast to steeplechase saddles, which have wider flaps to allow the jockey a more secure lower leg over fences, flat racing saddles have much smaller flaps.
Features of Horse Racing Saddles
A good saddle must have the following:
- A headstall, reins, breast collar, and pad.
- Comfortable seat with thick padding and memory foam.
- A lightweight and user-friendly saddle design.
- Well-padded stirrup for durability.
Picking The Right Horse Racing Saddles
You need a saddle that doesn’t restrict your horse’s natural movement in order for him to perform at his best.
The saddle fit on your horse can be the difference between a lifetime of happy rides and a long list of painful experiences and potential behaviour issues, much like a badly fitting pair of sneakers can hinder your daily workout routine.
Saddle Fitting
Make sure the saddle stays in the middle. Place your saddle on your horse’s back without a pad and without tightening the cinch once your horse is standing straight and level. Make sure your saddle is positioned in the centre of your horse’s back and isn’t moving to either side.
Tip: evaluate your horse’s saddle fit
Checking your saddle fit should become a regular part of your riding practice, whether you’re looking for a new saddle or keeping the one you currently use. With activity and ageing, your horse’s body condition and fitness are continually changing. Because of this, we advise having your saddle’s fit evaluated by a qualified saddle fitter at least once a year. You can improve your sensitivity to minute changes by paying attention to how your saddle fits your horse.
Seat Width
The width of the rider’s hips and pelvis is a metric that is directly correlated with seat size. You should select it based on the unique features of your body. In this situation, there are no general guidelines. Non-standard sizes are required due to a unique build. For instance, it is advised to select a seat size 16 and longer tabs for a rider who is 179 cm and 49 kg. It can be challenging to get the saddle fitted correctly.
The rider’s weight, height, level of riding proficiency, and the shape of the horse’s back must all be taken into consideration by the saddle fitter. It is crucial to stress at this point that nature is not symmetrical. The left and right sides of the body of the horse and the rider are not identical. Be aware of the measurements for the saddle fitting process since such imbalance can be corrected. You should, however, consider your personal preferences.
For example, some riders like larger or smaller saddles than those that are suggested for them. They have already tried various sizes. Trying out various saddle sizes is required rather than sticking with the suggested sizes. However, the saddle shouldn’t extend past the final immovable rib of the horse.
Gullet Size
The width of the horse’s body can be roughly estimated from the size of its gullet. Narrow, medium and wide trees are used to measure horse racing saddles. There should be roughly two inches of space between the horse’s withers and the underside of the pommel when a saddle of the proper width is mounted on the animal’s back.
The saddle’s seat needs to be level. A tree that is too wide will rest on the horse’s withers and cause the seat to tip forward; a tree that is too narrow will perch up on the horse’s withers and cause the seat to tip backwards. If necessary, padding can be used to lift the saddle off the horse’s withers on too-wide trees, but too-narrow trees should never be used since they pinch the horse’s shoulders.
Withers Bar
The withers bar is then advised to be fitted at the level of the horse’s shoulder girdle, which is the space between the left and right edges of the pommel. The withers bar can be adjusted based on the horse’s withers’ exact measurements, but you also need to consider the specific structure of the horse’s back. The withers bar refers to the saddle’s front opening. Every producer uses a different set of measures. Moreover, the use of saddle towels is essential. In stakes races, they provide gamblers with the horse’s program number as well as the race name and, frequently, the horse’s name.
Sweat Pattern
The next test is to ride in the saddle once it looks to fit both the horse and the rider. Under the saddle, put a thin, white saddle pad that has been cleaned. Ride the horse long and hard enough to make it sweat; this will give the rider a chance to assess whether or not the saddle is in fact comfortable. When the saddle is off, you can see the horse’s back’s sweat pattern. It needs to be uniform and even. Dry spots could be a sign that the saddle has bridged. Check the saddle pad’s underside. The pattern of sweat and dirt should also be rather uniform. Bridging or saddle rocking may be indicated by overly clean or unclean areas.
Where to Find the Best Horse Racing Saddles?
For your thoroughbred racing horse, only purchase the best equipment! Along with English and Western saddles, we provide top-notch tailored horse racing saddles. Not sure what’s the right saddle for your horse? Get in touch with us today.